The new HFP chat thread – Sunday 3rd May

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We have decided to run this new daily chat thread on Head for Points.

Historically, the daily ‘Bits’ articles were the defacto repository for random comments and questions. It is unlikely that the news flow will be so big over the next few weeks that we will need many ‘Bits’ articles, however.

The comments under this article are where you should post questions about travel and, indeed, anything else on your mind. At this tricky time, and given that many of you are stuck at home self-isolating, we want the HFP community to have a place to chat.

Please only comment under the main articles on the site if your comment is directly related to the topic of the article. This has long-term benefits as its keeps the commentary relevant for people who read those articles in the future.

By default, HFP shows the last page of comments under the article. If you want to see the first page of comments and read them all from beginning to end in order, click here: https://hfp2022.headforpoints.blog/2020/05/03/the-new-hfp-chat-thread-sunday-3rd-may/comment-page-1 The page will refresh with this article but the comments will now show the first page and not the last page.

We will continue to monitor how this is working. Let’s see how it goes. Take care!

Category

General

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

Jessiefan says:

3 May3 May 09:53

Hilton working fine for me. Yes VA website down but there is a message that they are working on it
luckyjim says:

3 May3 May 10:07

Over 3000 people have died in the the South West. This would be much closer to zero if it wasn’t for people like Ramsey travelling down there from London and bringing the disease with them.
- Sean says:
  
  3 May3 May 10:16
  
  and 26,000+ less in the UK if it hadn’t been brought over from the rest of the world. Whats your point?
- TGLoyalty says:
  
  3 May3 May 10:34
  
  The England stats say less than 1000 so quite a difference there.
- Lady London says:
  
  3 May3 May 20:32
  
  The problem is you can’t tell who’s got it for up to 14 days. And some people carry it and can transmit it and yet do not suffer from symptoms at all even after the 14 days.
  
  We need to sort out who’s got it
  I really can’t see how immunity passports or certificates work for travel when the person could have acquired the disease seconds after the certificate was issued. We also don’t know to what extent there is immunity yet – people who have it may be left damaged and still not immune.
LewisB says:

3 May3 May 10:47

Has anyone attempted to get their Dragon Pass Lounge visits extended from the $9.99 offer not so long ago? I have 4 visits which will expire come Jan 21.
- Rob says:
  
  3 May3 May 11:09
  
  They have been extended, I’ve seen the emails that were sent.
  - yorkieflyer says:
    
    3 May3 May 11:41
    
    No email received here Rob. App still shows Jan 21 expiry.
    - yorkieflyer says:
      
      3 May3 May 11:42
      
      Thinking of binning them anyway as I hadn’t realised they weren’t valid for Spanish airports till another pointed his out a while back
  - Cal says:
    
    3 May3 May 13:08
    
    I haven’t had any emails from Dragonpass, when did they go out?
    - Rob says:
      
      3 May3 May 13:27
      
      Around 7th April.
    - Jody says:
      
      3 May3 May 13:34
      
      Same here, no email and my passes show as expiring on 6th Jan
      - LewisB says:
        
        3 May3 May 18:51
        
        No email here either. Still says expiry in Jan.
      - yorkieflyer says:
        
        3 May3 May 23:30
        
        6 jan the same, what have we done wrong?
FloriGuy says:

3 May3 May 11:23

Hey,

My Ernies seem to be taking longer to clear. How long does it usually take you guys?
- mark2 says:
  
  3 May3 May 11:48
  
  payment 28th shows on IHG, 1 May on Lloyds still pending.
  - FloriGuy says:
    
    3 May3 May 11:58
    
    Thanks, but I meant clear as in availablee for withdrawal from Ernie!
    
    Are you able to withdraw yet?
    - Lev441 says:
      
      3 May3 May 12:22
      
      Takes around 5 days..
    - Doug M says:
      
      3 May3 May 13:57
      
      Fund and withdraw quickly and often, then expect some unwanted attention.
      - Don says:
        
        3 May3 May 15:14
        
        £5k a month too much? Leaving £5k on Revolut. Should I spread it in smaller chunks?
- The Urbanite says:
  
  3 May3 May 12:39
  
  8 days normally.
  - Secret Squirrel says:
    
    3 May3 May 13:09
    
    Agree 8 x days at present with transfers arriving PM.
mark says:

3 May3 May 11:53

Does anyone know if Curve (metal) charges a fee for a Cash withdrawal linked to a Virgin premium card?
Thank you
- Jack says:
  
  3 May3 May 20:36
  
  As of 2-3 months ago they have been doing so. I learned the hard way after months of fee free withdrawals…
Michael says:

3 May3 May 12:57

I’m on the naughty step from Revolut. I’ve had a couple of (justified) warnings about excessive transactions. Better caw canny for a while.
- Don says:
  
  3 May3 May 14:22
  
  What’s your monthly top-up amounts?
- FloriGuy says:
  
  3 May3 May 15:29
  
  Who you topping up with?
  - Michael says:
    
    3 May3 May 15:57
    
    IHG
    - FloriGuy says:
      
      3 May3 May 17:32
      
      You get charged fees?
      - Michael says:
        
        3 May3 May 17:52
        
        Just interest, no cash advance fee.
      - FloriGuy says:
        
        3 May3 May 19:24
        
        Got you. What do Revolut count as “excessive”?
    - Anna says:
      
      3 May3 May 18:07
      
      How much is excessive? I owe the seagulls big time this month as I’ve got a pension lump sum coming in a couple of weeks and been splurging a bit on the house and other bits…
      - Michael says:
        
        3 May3 May 18:09
        
        Less than 10,000 a month.
      - Anna says:
        
        3 May3 May 18:28
        
        Might have to set the OH up with his own Revolut account…
Harry T says:

3 May3 May 13:08

Has anyone stayed at the Four Seasons in Johannesburg? Looking to stay a couple of nights at the start of a visit to South Africa in January. Also open to any other recommendations at that price point.

Also open to safari recommendations in SA, although so far they have looked quite entertainingly expensive.
- Genghis says:
  
  3 May3 May 13:27
  
  Like I said last time, have a look at Intrepid’s safari option. It’s cheap and accommodation v basic but for seeing the animals, absolutely fantastic. We essentially had 3 days of private tours for hardly anything.
  - Harry T says:
    
    3 May3 May 13:37
    
    Thanks, I had forgotten the name – I will check them out.
    - Lady London says:
      
      3 May3 May 20:19
      
      Not sure if they’re still on the list but IIRC Intrepid used to be a Tesco boost so you could use Tesco pts ?
      - Genghis says:
        
        3 May3 May 20:29
        
        That’s how I paid.
  - CapeCam says:
    
    3 May3 May 22:35
    
    Four Seasons, used to be the Westcliff, Part of the Orient Express ( Belmond) group.
    
    Great hotel – great Service, old style colonial on a large property. Overlooks Johannesburg Zoo , so you may even get to hear the Lions roaring from your room ( like I did).
    Great way to start your trip before the rough of the bush 🙂
    
    Enhoy
  - CapeCam says:
    
    3 May3 May 22:39
    
    Four Seasons, used to be the Westcliff, Part of the Orient Express ( Belmond) group.
    
    Great hotel – great Service, old style colonial on a large property. Overlooks Johannesburg Zoo , so you may even get to hear the Lions roaring from your room ( like I did).
    Great way to start your trip before the rough of the bush 🙂
    
    Enjoy
- David S says:
  
  3 May3 May 13:51
  
  If you are not after Kruger, look at Eastern cape private safaris. You do need to get to Port Elizabeth from Jo’burg. No malaria and still saw the big 5. There are multitude of options at various different prices. Some do deals such as 3 nights for 2, which makes the price a little more palatable.
- N says:
  
  3 May3 May 15:43
  
  Yes, escaped there after mistakenly booking a room at the awful Protea Parktonian. Booked same evening via Amex FHR. We were only spending a night in JNB before our flight back to the UK so can’t comment on the city or on the hotel as a jumping off point to see the city. Hotel was good – room service awful, but excellent pool and spa and I remember breakfast to be OK but not much more (but we had just come from the Conrad Pezula which had been incredible).
  
  They did, however, give us the key to another couple’s room at first, but I guess these things happen!
- Jen T says:
  
  3 May3 May 17:57
  
  If you want a great experience for incredible value (but not luxury), book one of the Kruger Wilderness Trails organised and run by the Park Service. We had an incredible time, with walks and drives in small groups for a fraction of what we have paid for in a private game reserve. If an ensuite bathroom is a must, the Napi Wilderness Trail is the one to book.
- Jill (Kinkell) says:
  
  3 May3 May 18:28
  
  We stayed at The One and Only hotel in Capetown. Lovely view of Table Mountain from our room. Fab breakfast . Hotel really central to Waterfront area. We went to Gorah Elephant Park in Eastern cape and saw big 5… and a cheetah hunting! Also been to Marataba ,north of JNB..lovely scenery, both Malaria free. . I guess most safaris will offer a great experience . Wherever you go it will be fab.
  We booked with Trailfinders and a few were 3 for 2 nights etc. Can’t complain….would love to go again when all the shenanigans are over.
  - Jill (Kinkell) says:
    
    3 May3 May 18:29
    
    Gosh, first time Ive seen the gravatar pic.
- Secret Squirrel says:
  
  3 May3 May 20:16
  
  I’ve just looked up Four Seasons Johannesburg and surprised at the value for a FS hotel there. Nice looking Garden view room for £164 a night.
Baji Nahid says:

3 May3 May 13:21

i remember when I used to book tickets on the BA website, it would tell me how many avios i would get for the booking but also how many tier points I would get too! Since their wesbite refresh happened it now looks like they dont do this and its quite annoying as i would like to see how many tier points my journey is lol! i know its a small thing but just for interest purposes!
- Harry T says:
  
  3 May3 May 13:38
  
  It’s a bit of a hassle but you can use the tier point and Avios calculator on the BA website for each segment.
  - Baji Nahid says:
    
    3 May3 May 13:54
    
    Ah yes thanks harry, its just frustrating because they did use to show it when you were booking a ticket.
    - Lumma says:
      
      3 May3 May 15:17
      
      It tells you how many Avios you’ll get when you look at the part pay with Avios options. “£5 off for 500 Avios, £7 off for 850 Avios. You’ll earn 250 Avios for this booking”. On an example I’ve just checked
      
      I think you’ll have to use the calculator to work out tier points, although I can’t remember ever seeing that when booking
      - Baji Nahid says:
        
        3 May3 May 15:39
        
        Yes Lumma, i can see this, but i was talking more about seeing the tier points that would be collected when you were booking a flight